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Series VIII contains restricted student evaluations, letters of recommendation, and confidential social work case records. Box 52 contains letters of recommendation and teaching evaluations, and is restricted for 50 years from date of record creation. Boxes 53-55 contain student evaluations and letters of recommendation, and are restricted for 80 years from date of record creation. Box 56 contains confidential social work reports and transcripts, and is restricted indefinitely. Materials are arranged chronologically.
Series V does not include access copies for the audio material in this series. Researchers will need to consult with staff before requesting material from this series.
When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Simon, Bernece K. Papers, [Box #, Folder #], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.
Bernece Kern Simon, social worker, social work educator and administrator, served on the faculty of the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration from 1944 to 1979.
Simon received a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of Chicago (1936), as well as master's degree from the School of Social Service Administration (1942). Early in her career, she worked at the Jewish Children's Bureau, then at the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics. She joined the faculty of SSA in 1944, working as an instructor in the classroom and the field. She became an assistant professor in 1948. In the 1960s-1970s, Simon served in a variety of administrative positions in SSA, chairing the generalist sequence, directing the field instruction program, and chairing the casework sequence. Simon was appointed professor in 1964.
Following her formal retirement in 1979, she continued to teach in the school's doctoral program. In 1975, she was named Samuel Deutsch Professor, in honor of her scholarship and service to the University. Simon served on university administrative committees, including the Council of the University Senate.
Simon also took on leadership roles in professional organizations; she served on the Board of Directors of the Council for Social Work Education, national committees of the National Association of Social Workers, and editorial boards for Social Work and the Encyclopedia of Social Work. The National Association of Social Workers honored Simon as a Social Work Pioneer.
This collection documents Bernece K. Simon's career as a social work educator, administrator in the School of Social Service Administration, and leader in national professional organizations. The collection is arranged into eight series.
Series I: Correspondence, contains incoming and outgoing letters and memoranda, spanning the years 1955-1998. Topics covered in correspondence include teaching, departmental administrative affairs, arrangements for travel and events, faculty appointments, and publications. Correspondents in this series include students, university faculty and staff, editors and colleagues outside the university.
Series II: School of Social Service Administration, spans the 1950s through 1991, and documents Simon's teaching and administrative duties within the University of Chicago's School of Social Service Administration. Course material in this series includes notes for lectures and discussion, syllabi, assignments, bibliographies and reading lists, course outlines, student work, and related correspondence. Administrative material in this series includes minutes, agendas, statistics, reports, notes, and related correspondence.
Series III: University Administration and Inter-Disciplinary Committees, includes material from Simon's work on university administrative units, as well as interdisciplinary committees that brought together faculty from multiple schools and departments in the university. Material in this series includes meeting minutes, agendas, correspondence, and reports. Also included in this series are speech transcripts and press releases. Files in this series span the years 1964-1976.
Series IV: Professional Activities, documents Simon's involvement in professional organizations, social work journals, and teaching at other institutions. Material in this series includes drafts of speeches, lectures and presentations; meeting minutes and agendas; materials for teaching workshops, seminars and institutes; event programs and schedules; and related notes and correspondence. Files in this series span the years 1952-1995.
Series V: Audio Recordings, contains two audio cassettes of Bernece Simon at the University of Louisville's Kent School of Social Work.
Series VI: Personal, includes biographical information, appointment calendars, social worker certifications, certificates of membership and awards from professional associations, and a copy of Simon's Master's thesis.
Series VII: Oversize, contains certificates and a copy of the book Celebrating Social Work: Faces and Voices of the Formative Years, by Elizabeth Wichers DuMez and Donato Sardella.
Series VIII: Restricted, includes student papers, evaluations, letters of recommendation, and confidential medical records. Box 52 contains letters of recommendation and teaching evaluations, and is restricted for 50 years from date of record creation. Boxes 53-55 contain student evaluations and letters of recommendation, and are restricted for 80 years from date of record creation. Box 56 contains confidential social work reports and transcripts, and is restricted indefinitely. Materials are arranged chronologically.
The following related resources are located in the Department of Special Collections:
This series contains incoming and outgoing letters and memoranda, spanning the years 1955-1998.
This series includes correspondence with students, university faculty and staff, editors and colleagues outside the university. Topics covered in correspondence included teaching, departmental administrative affairs, arrangements for travel and events, faculty appointments, and publications.
This series contains material from Simon's teaching and administrative duties within the University of Chicago's School of Social Service Administration. Course material in this series includes notes for lecture and discussion, syllabi, assignments, bibliographies and reading lists, course outlines, student work, and related correspondence. Administrative material in this series includes minutes, agendas, statistics, reports, notes, and related correspondence.
This series is divided into five subseries, each of which is organized alphabetically by subject, with general files at the beginning of the subseries. There is considerable overlap in the sources of material found in Subseries 2-4.
Subseries 1: Administration and Events, spans the years 1951-1989. This subseries contains primarily administrative material, but also includes material related to the organization of SSA events, and the development of courses and curricula.
Subseries 2: Field Instruction, spans the years 1930-1979. Much of the material in this subseries relates to Simon's administration of field instructors. Also included is documentation of field work sites, student placement in field work, curriculum assessment, and special events and conferences.
Subseries 3: Casework Curriculum, spans the years 1953-1984. This series contains material from casework courses taught by Simon and others, casework faculty meetings, and casework-related administrative committees.
Subseries 4: Generalist Curriculum, spans the years 1965-1984. This series contains material from generalist courses taught by Simon and others, as well as administrative material related to course development and curriculum assessment. Much of this material was prepared for a 1971-1972 assessment and re-accreditation of the generalist program.
Subseries 5: Advanced and Professional Education Courses, spans the years 1962-1991. This series contains material from advanced seminars in the SSA curriculum, as well as from summer institutes and other continuing education courses for social work professionals.
This series documents Simon's work on University committees, as well as interdisciplinary committees that brought together faculty from multiple schools and departments in the University. This material includes meeting minutes, agendas, correspondence, and reports. Also included in this series are speech transcripts and press releases. Files in this series are arranged alphabetically by subject or format, and span the years 1964-1976.
This series documents Simon's involvement in professional organizations, social work journals, and teaching at other institutions. Material in this series includes drafts of speeches, lectures and presentations; meeting minutes and agendas; materials for teaching workshops, seminars and institutes; event programs and schedules; and related notes and correspondence. Files in this series are arranged alphabetically by organization or event, and span the years 1952-1995.
Particularly well-represented in this series is Simon's leadership in the Council for Social Work Education and the National Association of Social Workers, as well as her editorial work for the journal Social Work. This series also includes many drafts of Simon's professional writing.
This series contains audiocassette tape recordings of Bernece Simon at the University of Louisville's Kent School of Social Work.
This series contains appointment calendars from 1942-2004, social worker certifications, certificates of membership and awards from professional associations, biographical information, and a copy of Simon's Master's thesis.
This series includes student evaluations, letters of recommendation, and confidential social work case records.